A Very Merry Christmas

We had such a wonderful Christmas. We are blessed to have an amazing, loving, crazy, big family to celebrate with. All my siblings came into town for the week of Christmas. We did many fun things while they were here and got to spend a lot of time together.

Experiencing Christmas through the girl's eyes is so fun. You know Brynn is obsessed with all Christmas decorations. She was excited about Santa coming to town.

All the cousins on Christmas Eve.

Look at these two cheese balls.

After church on Christmas Eve we went over to the Abbott's house. Now Brynn knows Bob and has seen him numerous times throughout her life, but obviously this whole Santa thing is clouding her thinking......she thought Bob was Santa! She couldn't get enough of him.....normally she doesn't talk to him (sorry Bob). But that night she kept asking "where's Santa?" and told me how Santa had read her a story.

Cami with her Godmother, Rachel. Checking out her baby highchair. I tried to get a good pic, but she wasn't having any of it!

Christmas Morning:

Now I have to say that out of everyone who do you think woke up the earliest??

Brent!!

Seriously, he was up at 6am and said he couldn't go back to sleep. Just like a little kid.

I swear he would have woken those girls up if I wouldn't have told him NO wait til 7:30am!

Showing off the new presents:

Cami had a very baby Christmas. This little mama got all things baby: new babies, a car seat, a stroller, a highchair, and even her sweet Aunt Kyle made her a diaper bag with wipes!! Which she LOVES, but keeps trying to throw the cloth wipes in the trash!! We are working on that, but for now I am on constant 'trash patrol'!!

Brynn had a Disney Christmas. She got two different Jasmine dolls, some princess dress up clothes and shoes, some toy story figures and stuffed dolls. She was loving every second of Christmas this year!

Brynn in her Belle dress.

My two favorite girls.

Now in her Sleeping Beauty dress. Necklace, fur wrap and all!

Next to her BFF Frosty.

Today I told her that Christmas was over and that we were going to have to take our decorations down soon. She looked at me and said "NO, don't say that!"

December Days

This little container has been our activity guide all month! My sister, Kirby, had this really neat idea for an advent calendar, so when she was home in October we made these.

Not crafty??

Me neither!

Anyone can make these babies.

We got 25 little matchboxes and covered them with Christmas scrapbook paper then numbered them. Every day Brynn opens one up and I read what activity we are going to do that day.

Some days it is as simple as a Christmas book or movie, other days we go somewhere.

The focus is to concentrate on the Reason for the Season and to get our minds and hearts focused on Jesus' birth.

To spend some fun, quality family time.

To not get stressed out and caught up with all the hustle and bustle.

To not get caught up in all the gifts from Santa and relations but remember the most important gift of all, Jesus.

That sweet Baby, born on Christmas is the greatest gift of all.

Here are a few examples of what we have done:

• Movie and hot chocolate
• Reading Christmas books from the library, who knew there were so many about Jesus' birth!! Our favs so far:

1. God Gave Us Christmas
2. The Christmas Story
3. The Story of Christmas
4. Who is Coming to Our House?
5. B is for Bethlehem

• Baking Christmas cookies
• Singing Christmas Songs
• Christmas Crafts
• Driving around looking at Christmas lights
• Drive thru Nativity

I tried to get some of our activities in picture.....but my hands were usually full! Sorry!

Here we are at the Christmas parade.

Brynn and her friend Jake.

This girl could spend hours looking at all the ornaments on the tree!

We went to a Walk Thru Bethlehem in Boerne.

St. Helenas put this on and re-enacted the night Jesus was born. They had Camels, which of course Brynn loved.

She kept calling this donkey Small One.

This was on a trip to the zoo. (Nothing to do with Christmas, just good family time!)

Went to La Cantera Westin for a Christmas show.

All smiles before we saw Santa.

Where is Cami?? As soon as Brent set her on Santa's lap she started crying.

But give her a candy cane after and she's all smiles again!

Our 1st ever gingerbread house! Mommy learned a lot.

Merry Christmas!!!

Friday Funnies

Brynn just loves loves loves the christmas decorations. She loves to walk around our block and look at them all. One of the neighbors has a blow up snowman in their yard. It was deflated the other day on our walk and was laying in a puddle on the ground. Brynn ran up to it, picked up the top hat and said, "OH NO Frosty melted!"

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I was on the phone discussing to my Mom how Wade had told a lie. Once I am off the phone this is our conversation:

B: Why is Wade in the dog house Mommy?

M: Because he was lying to Mimi.

B: Why was he a lion?

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We were at the library for story hour and at the end of class they put out a big bin of books for the kids to pick books from. Cami just wanted to go get a book, bring it to me, then go get another one. There was this Mom that had long, dark, shiny hair sitting next to the bin and everytime Cami walked by her she would pet this lady's hair!! She did it about eight times. She would walk by hair lady, pet her hair, and keep on walking.

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I had my book laying on the couch and Cami kept pointing to it and saying Mimi, over and over again. Everytime she saw this picture she would say Mimi. This is what the new Mimi looks like

Friday Funnies

(A little late, sorry)

So Brynn just loves to be mother hen to Cami and also to tattle on her. (imagine that) Whenever I correct Cami, Brynn has to point out that she is being a perfect angel. Usually something like this:

M: Camdyn stop throwing your food.
B: Look at me Mommy. (sitting there eating her food)

OR

Camdyn is standing up on a chair.
M: Camdyn sit on your heiney.
B: Look at me Mommy. (sitting in her chair)

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Brynn also likes to say that Cami missed it when I tell them to look at something.

M: Girls look at the Christmas lights.
B: Cami missed it.

OR

M: Girls look at the cows out Cami's window.
B: She missed it.

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The other night Brynn said "look Cami has a puppy and polka nots of her jammies".

13.1

I think it was in August that my Aunt Rachel said, "Well what do you think about running a half marathon?"

What did I think??

Honestly??

That she was crazy! Only crazy people run half marathons!

This was my first thought.

Then I looked at the training guide. The first weeks weren't so bad...but then come the long 9, 10, and 11 mile runs. Running for an hour and a half or longer?? CRAZY!!

So we trained for it. We ran our long runs together, and honestly if I wouldn't have had her I probably couldn't have done it by myself.

It actually wasn't that bad.

Running for an hour and half went by fast.

I actually enjoyed it!

Now, will I run another half marathon??

Yes I would and probably will.

Will I ever run a full??

Never say never, but that's just crazy! (My Aunt Becky ran her first full marathon the same day we did our first half!)

Here we are victorious and still standing after running 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 16 minutes!!

Our new motto, courtesy of Becky, "We're not crazy, you're just LAZY!"

Friday Funnies

I was fixing my hair with my Chi one morning.

B: What are you doing Mommy?

M: Fixing my hair.

B: With an alligator?

Apparently my Chi looks like an alligator's mouth!

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Brynn says "oh yeah" if I correct her on something. Usually it's something like this:

B: I love these snowflags. (decorations in our yard)

M: Those are snowflakes honey.

B: Oh yeah. snowflakes.

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Cami kept turning off the radio after I told her repeatedly not to.

M: Cami don't touch the radio again, do you understand?

B: Mommy she didn't say yes ma'am.

(This is what I make Brynn say to me.)